Published 4:00 am, Wednesday, October 11, 2000

2000-10-11 04:00:00 PDT San Francisco -- Two San Francisco supervisors offered plans yesterday to help struggling nonprofit organizations survive during a boom economy that has already swept some of the groups away.

The proposals by Supervisors Tom Ammiano and Michael Yaki, coming on top of plans disclosed last week by Mayor Willie Brown, offer the prospect that within the next few weeks several million dollars in city money will be available to service organizations and arts groups fighting to keep or find affordable homes.

But it did not take long for quarreling to start, because Yaki and Brown focus more on providing groups with long-term solutions, while Ammiano wants to spend money now to help nonprofits fighting eviction.

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Ammiano proposed at the supervisors' weekly meeting that the city take $1.5 million from its reserves to provide rent subsidies and capital- improvement repairs for nonprofit arts groups that are in danger of being displaced. He also asked the city attorney to draft a law allowing arts groups to use city-owned performance or exhibition space when it is not otherwise in use.

He mentioned the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium and the War Memorial Building as two possible sites.

Yaki proposed a $500,000 short- term emergency rent fund and a $2.5 million capital fund that would be combined with other money from the city or foundations for long-term leases or capital improvements to buildings.

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He also asked the city attorney to determine whether San Francisco can grant tax breaks to property owners who enter into long-term affordable leases with nonprofit groups.

Yaki also pressed the City Planning Commission to hurry its consideration of creating "commercial nonprofit" or "commercial cultural/arts service" zones to provide homes for nonprofits in areas set aside for them.

Last week, Brown proposed redirecting $5 million in existing city funds to help finance long-term leases for nonprofit groups. For the longer term, he suggested using Pier 70 on the central waterfront or part of Hunters Point Naval Shipyard to house arts groups.

The proposals by the two supervisors and the mayor came after a survey of arts groups by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation found that more than one-third have already lost their leases, are month-to-month renters or will lose their leases by December 2001, when they could face prohibitive rent increases.

Ammiano said that he expects his legislation to be ready as soon as next week and that he hopes the board acts quickly.

"I think it's possible as long as we're not at cross-purposes," he said. "The arts community has really focused the attention of the board and the mayor on this."

Ammiano said he hopes supervisors "won't stand in the way of anyone else's legislation."

"My concern is that Mayor Brown and Yaki are trying to make this into a Proposition L issue, while Tom is offering immediate hope," Walker said.

Proposition L on the Nov. 7 ballot would restrict office construction in some neighborhoods and ban it in others and would also offer incentives to landlords to rent space to nonprofits at below-market rates. Ammiano and Walker back the measure, while Brown and Yaki oppose it.

The mayor has offered Proposition K, which would not place as many restrictions on office development but would also provide incentives to rent to nonprofit groups at bargain prices. Walker and other Proposition L advocates say the plans proposed by Yaki and the mayor are designed to deflect support for the tougher measure.

"The mayor's plan won't do anything to help groups stay in town," Walker said.

Yaki said his proposal has nothing to do with the dueling propositions.

"We need to send a real signal that we have interest in preserving our nonprofit service organizations," he said. "If we need to go to the well in good times to help them, then we should."

Yaki warned that it would not do much good to help nonprofits enter into long-term leases at today's sky- high rents, only to have them find out that they cannot pay.